Why Not All Traction Is Equal | Aligning Latam’s Agtech Innovation with Industry Needs | The Role of LPs in Early VC Investing | Long-Term Thinking in Fundraising, with Galit Flasterstein, Managing Partner @ Danta Fund | Ep 8

Why Not All Traction Is Equal | Aligning Latam’s Agtech Innovation with Industry Needs | The Role of LPs in Early VC Investing | Long-Term Thinking in Fundraising, with Galit Flasterstein, Managing Partner @ Danta Fund | Ep 8

Biodiversity as an Advantage Galit is a Managing Partner at Danta Fund, a VC firm that backs early-stage agritech startups in Latin America. Danta Fund has the mission of filling three main voids in Latin America: funding in early-stage agri-tech startups, mentorship to guide their founders, and connection with larger markets to help them grow. Topics in this episode 0:00 Intro 0:57 Galit’s Path From Founder to VC   5:12 How Danta’s Mentors Help Startups   7:08 Danta’s North Star for Startup Selection   9:24 What Makes an LOI Count   10:37 Helping Startups Enter Global Markets   14:28 How Corporates Can Engage Startups   21:57 Why Danta Passes on Startups   25:08 Common Founder Aha Moments   26:49 Why LPs Join Startup Interviews   31:50 What Founders Miss About VCs   33:35 How LATAM Agtech Differs Globally   38:04 Finding & Validating Customers   41:21 What Drives Demand for Sustainability   44:50 Saying No to High-Risk Startups   47:17 Why Danta Focuses on the U.S.   52:27 Who Should Apply to Danta Fund   53:32 Connect With Galit  Connect with Galit on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/galitflasterstein/ Follow Danta Fund on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/danta-fund/ Visit Danta Fund's Website and Subscribe to their Newsletter https://dantafund.com/ Email Galit galit@dantafund.com Connect with JP Orlov on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jp-orlov/ Follow Science VC on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/science-vc Follow Science VC on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/science.vc Subscribe to Science VC on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@ScienceVC Subscribe to our Newsletter https://substack.com/@jporlov Learn how WeArePalta can help your deeptech company communicate its science and impact https://www.wearepalta.com/

Unlocking Unsung Potential | LATAM Biotech’s Global Path | What Investors Really Look For | Avoiding Unforced Errors | Why Tulsa? | Building Cross-Border Deeptech Startups, with Michael Basch, GP and CEO @ Atento Capital | Ep 7

Why not Tulsa? Michael is the Founder, CEO, and General Partner of Atento Capital, a pre-seed and seed-stage VC firm focused on partnering with founders to build technology around healthcare, climate-tech, and business services. Topics in this episode 0:00 Intro 1:13 Michael’s Career Journey: From Founder to VC 4:07 The Origin Story of Atento Capital 5:04 Backing from the George Kaiser Family Foundation 10:13 Why Atento Capital Partnered with GRIDX 12:50 Tulsa’s Startup Ecosystem 20:43 How Being a Founder Shapes Michael’s Investment Approach 25:40 Explaining Science Simply to Investors 30:42 The Convergence of Exponential Technologies 34:19 Capital Concentration in Mega Funds 46:01 What to Include in Effective Investor Updates 48:18 Inside the Atento Capital x GRIDX Demo Day 50:35 What’s Next for Atento Capital 52:02 Connect With Michael Connect with Michael on LinkedIn   https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikebasch/ Follow Atento Capital on LinkedIn  https://www.linkedin.com/company/atento-capital/posts/?feedView=all  Visit Atento Capital’s Website https://www.atentocapital.com/  Connect with JP Orlov on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jp-orlov/ Follow Science VC on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/science-vc Follow Science VC on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/science.vc Subscribe to Science VC on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/4XcR1Efx8SUqZqMZROQfQl Subscribe to our Newsletter https://substack.com/@jporlov Learn how WeArePalta can help your deeptech company communicate its science and impact https://www.wearepalta.com/

Why No Idea Is Truly Unique | Leveraging Warm Intros and Mentorships | Communicating Urgency and Opportunities to VCs | Success Beyond Funding | Inside NYU’s Acceleration Program with Khoa Ma, Associate Director @ Endless Frontier Labs | Ep 6

Are there unique ideas anymore? Khoa Ma is an Associate Director at Endless Frontier Labs, a program at NYU Stern School of Business for early-stage science and technology startups.  Topics in this episode 0:00 Intro 1:07 Khoa’s Career Path 3:22 How Endless Frontier Labs Evaluates Startups 8:45 What Gets Startups Into Endless Frontier Labs 11:22 Most Impressive Startup Pitch 14:49 Maximizing Mentor Relationships 18:38 Building Investor Connections 26:20 Measuring Success Beyond Funding 29:33 Showing Traction Pre-Revenue 33:16 VC Blind Spots in Deeptech 36:32 Separating Sci-Fi From Reality 39:13 Underrated Deeptech Opportunities 42:31 Communicating Urgency to Investors 45:14 Founders’ Aha Moments 48:50 Best Cold Outreach Examples 51:55 No Unique Ideas Anymore 57:28 Reading Books vs. Doing 1:00:22 Who Should Apply to Endless Frontier Labs 1:01:46 Connect With Khoa Connect with Khoa on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/khoahma/ Follow Endless Frontier Labs on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/endlessfrontierlabs/posts/?feedView=all Connect with JP Orlov on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jp-orlov/ Follow Science VC on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/science-vc Follow Science VC on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/science.vc Subscribe to Science VC on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@ScienceVC Subscribe to our Newsletter https://substack.com/@jporlov Learn how WeArePalta can help your deeptech company communicate its science and impact https://www.wearepalta.com/

Balancing Risk Across Two Industries | From Scientist to VC to Founder | Building Trust Among Co-founders | Protecting IP & Unlocking Markets | Fundraising Insights from Brazil with Larissa de Farias Viana, CEO @ APEXzymes | Ep 5

Can a single innovation unlock multiple billion-dollar markets? Larissa is the CEO of APEXzymes, a Brazilian biotech startup that produces cost-effective enzymes for sustainable industrial applications. During our conversation, Larissa shares her journey from chemical engineering to venture capital and entrepreneurship. Topics in this episode 0:00 Intro 1:06 From Chemical Engineer to VC to Founder 4:56 Why Leave Venture Capital to Build a Startup? 6:38 How Self-Doubt Can Drive Innovation 8:25 Advice Before Starting APEXzymes 9:34 What Are Enzymes and Why Do They Matter? 12:19 APEXzymes’ Value Proposition 13:40 What Investors Miss About APEXzymes 17:13 Key Markets: Biofuels, Cattle Feed & More 19:48 How Enzymes Boost Productivity and Cut Methane 22:11 Early Commercial Traction 23:58 Communicating Traction to Investors 27:50 Turning Enzyme Strains Into Patentable Assets 32:43 Balancing Focus vs. Market Size 38:12 Lessons from Fundraising and Non-Dilutive Grants 43:33 What GRIDX Saw in APEXzymes 46:05 Building Trust With Co-Founders 49:00 Aligning Weekly Tasks With Long-Term Vision 55:22 What’s Next for APEXzymes? Follow APEXzymes on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/apexzymes/posts/?feedView=all Connect with Larissa on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/larissadefv/ Email Larissa larissa.viana@apexzymes.com Connect with JP Orlov on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jp-orlov/ Follow Science VC on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/science-vc Follow Science VC on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/science.vc Subscribe to Science VC on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@ScienceVC Subscribe to our Newsletter https://substack.com/@jporlov Learn how WeArePalta can help your deeptech company communicate its science and impact https://www.wearepalta.com/

The Business Case for Carbon Capture | A $200B Opportunity | Rethinking Industrial Supply Chains | Why You Need to Talk to Customers Early | Leveraging Non-Dilutive Capital with Alexander Ip, CEO @ CERT Systems | Ep 4

Is it possible to transform carbon emissions into everyday products? Alex is the CEO of CERT Systems, a Canadian climatetech startup that converts CO2 emissions into high-value chemicals. In this episode, Alex shares his journey from the lab bench to raising non-dilutive capital. Topics in this episode 0:00 Intro  1:16 Founding CERT Systems  3:14 Why Now for CO2 Conversion?  5:33 Unlocking Commercial Potential  8:52 Communicating Sustainability  10:45 Why Petrochemical Companies Care  13:59 Integrating CERT’s Tech  16:33 Why Investors Should Pay Attention  21:29 Biggest Bottleneck for CO2 Chemicals  24:36 Best Markets for CERT’s Tech  29:14 Scaling from Lab to Market  33:08 First Adopters of CO2 Ethylene  37:07 Ethylene’s Role in Aviation Fuel  41:43 Raising Non-Dilutive Funding  44:28 De-Risking Climate Tech Startups  47:52 Protecting IP in Deeptech  54:15 CERT’s Role in Sustainability’s Future  56:18 What’s Next for CERT?  Connect with Alex on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/ipalex/?originalSubdomain=ca Follow CERT on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/co2cert/posts/?feedView=all Email Alex alex@co2cert.com Connect with JP Orlov on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jp-orlov/ Follow Science VC on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/science-vc Follow Science VC on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/science.vc Subscribe to Science VC on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@ScienceVC [https://www.youtube.com/@ScienceVC] Subscribe to our Newsletter https://substack.com/@jporlov Learn how WeArePalta can help your deeptech company communicate its science and impact https://www.wearepalta.com/